Empirical Models of Macronutrient Uptake in Melon Plants Grown in Recirculating Nutrient Solution Culture

The article presents a number of empirical models for predicting the macronutrient uptake of melon plants grown in nutrient film technique under environmental conditions of plastic greenhouse in the Mediterranean region. Models were developed according to two statistical procedures: stepwise multiple regression (MR) and canonical correlation (CC). Independent variables considered by the modeling were global radiation and air temperature in the greenhouse, crop age (expressed as number of weeks from planting, growing degree days and photo-thermal units), and the uptake of water as well as of a guide-ion that could be routinely measured manually by means of easy-to-use test-kits or automatically with chemo-sensors. The best models, as selected on the basis of determination coefficient and the correlation coefficient for the relationship between residuals and observations, explained only 36-72% of the variance in the mineral uptake, depending on the considered nutrient. Moreover, the models were conservative, as predicted values tended to be less extreme with respect to the observed values and the residuals were positively correlated to the observations. The results of MR and CC were similar, although the validation of the models derived from CC produced better results compared to MR. The models provided evidence for the close relationship between ion and water uptake and indicated the possibility to predict the crop mineral requirements on the basis of the consumption of a guide-ion (i.e., nitrogen).